


Frozen Heart

by noxiousSanctity



Category: Devil May Cry
Genre: Danero, Frozen AU, M/M, MY GAYS, dante tries to help him control it, jesus in a handbasket, kyrie and nero are friends but after his arm changed he fled, nero ice prince au, so basically nothing from the game happens???, why do i do that
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-12-01
Updated: 2016-05-08
Packaged: 2018-05-04 10:15:06
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 8
Words: 11,187
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5330420
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/noxiousSanctity/pseuds/noxiousSanctity
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>An unnatural winter floods through Limbo City and Fortuna both, and Dante is sent to get rid of the icy chaos. The problem is, how is he supposed to stop the Ice Prince who causes it when even he doesn't know how?</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Once Upon an August Day

**Author's Note:**

> And melt the frozen heart

There were rumours surrounding Fortuna Castle. Hushed ones, whispers that filled the air like permeated frost. Few humans had gone searching for its secrets and survived the trip, but the ones that did told stories of ice paladins and a voice like crystalline snowflakes drifting through the harsh environment. There were rumours of a princess, trapped inside her lonely tower, or a beast, hiding away from the world while mourning a loss of its own. Sad and forlorn, stuck there for eternity.

            Dante, for one, didn’t give a shit until this morning.

            “Damn!” he huffed, his breath curling into the ceiling like smoke, wisping away when it reached the top. “Why is it so cold in here? We live in the hot areas, and I can see my own breath! It’s august!”

            Trish was leaning against his desk, picking at her nails. She was wearing a large coat, faux fur framing her pale skin and making her look like a queen. Her eyebrow twitched upwards at Dante’s comment and turned to look at him. “You _do_ remember that job I told you about a while ago? The one where they literally were not joking when they said that ‘Winter is Coming?’ I asked you to go down there, and they were ready to pay a hefty sum to you, but you said that you had something better to do.” The dry sarcasm in her voice made Dante let out a laugh, but before he could say anything in his defense, she cut him off. “Ordering pizza is not something better to do.”

            “Aw, C’mon Trish.” He sighed and sat down, crossing his legs to preserve his body heat. “I can’t be completely to blame. I just got home from a job, I was tired and wanted some pizza, and you wanted to send me out on _another_ job just as I got home! I was gonna get around to it!”

            “Dante. That was two months ago.”

            He blinked. “What? Really?”

            She nodded, and the way her eyebrows were furrowed Dante knew that there really wasn’t a way to get out of this mess. Sighing, he stood up and brushed himself off, looking over at her. “Alright, then. I guess I’m gonna get going now. Any advice from up north?”

            When he got smacked in the face with a heavy red coat, he got the gist of it.

 

            “Fuck, she wasn’t kidding.” Dante breathed, popping the collar of his winter coat up to shield himself from the flurries racing through the street like crazed stallions. The snow was so deep even he could barely trudge through it without getting frostbite. All of the houses around him were boarded up and heavily guarded, either abandoned or people trying to survive. As he reached the Order’s temple, the doors seemed to open wide for him, the chill seeping through his bones even as he entered the firelit room. He looked at the intricate gothic structure before looking down at a short woman who meekly shuffled in front of him. Her hair was tight in a ponytail, and she looked like something out of a fairytale. She bowed to him, her voice quiet and meek. “My name is Kyrie, and you must be the man they sent to help us with the unnatural snow.”

            “Yeah, that’s me.” He grinned and brushed some of the white powder off of his shoulder. “So, do you guys have any idea what it is? Demon? Human? A guy just having a bad time?”

            “No, we do not know right now, which is why we hired someone of royal blood.” She looked up at him timidly, and Dante looked confused for a moment before she continued. “Sparda’s son.”

            “Ah. Right. Well, I wouldn’t call it royal blood, more like the all day cure to a hangover.” He grinned again, and her timid smile was all that he received in reply before she scuttled away, a ‘please follow me’ lost into the echoes of the hall.

            “Everyone has left Fortuna once the snow began to freeze from the bottom up. It is august, the snow does not come until later in November, but I fear that something has changed.” She turned around and looked at Dante. “I was out looking at the flowers when I heard the singing.”

            “Singing? Like, horrible country singing or like that guy who won’t get off the karaoke mic?” Which was usually him, by the way. But fuck everyone else, he was a damn good singer.

            She hummed and led him to another doorway at the end of the castle. “Like…A whisper. It wasn’t loud for the first couple of weeks, but as the snow came, it grew louder and stronger. Like it was the voice of the weather. We tried to adapt, but it was too hard, too fast, and so most of us fled.” Her voice was a sad thing now as she murmured, “Only me and my brother are left. We were the ones that called for you.”

            Dante was rarely able to feel guilt, but now he might feel a smidgen of it. “Hey, look, I’m sorry for not coming earlier.”

            “Earlier, later, it makes no difference. You came, and that is all that matters. Thank you.” She fidgeted with her dress for a little bit before looking up at the demon hunter. “I do… I do have one small request.” He raised an eyebrow to signal her to continue, and she did so. “The… the demon who resides there. Unless you absolutely have to, please don’t kill him.”

            “Him?” The words left Dante’s mouth before he could stop them. “How do you know it’s a him?”

            Her face paled, and she took a step back. “I-I don’t!” Her voice raised and she seemed like a timid mouse. “I just took a guess! I… I love the snow. I just want our families to come back. Just, ask him to stop? Or her?” She finished hurriedly, eyes darting around.

            Dante wanted to ask her more, but because of how she was trembling, he decided against it. “Alright. I’ll do my best, but I can’t really promise anything, alright? If he- or she- has to die, you gotta accept that this was inevitable. There was nothing I could have done otherwise. Okay?”

            Her head drooped, but her nod was there. He ruffled her hair, and she looked up at him like a befuddled barn owl. “Hey, don’t look so sad. I’ll bring back summer, okay? Promise.” He stepped towards the door and shoved them open, the blast of cold air making his eyes shut tight as he pulled on goggles to protect his eyes. “Well this is gonna be an adventure.” He chuckled before stepping out into the frozen world beyond.

           


	2. Icy Frost Both Foul and Fair

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Dante Comes Face To Face With the Source. For snow, It's pretty salty.  
> Listen to 'Once Upon a December' Music box okay??!?!?! it goes good with it

Dante couldn’t remember the last time he could feel his feet. All he knew was that they were still moving, and that was enough for him to hate the snow. “Four billion tons of white bullshit.” He grumbled, shuffling through the endless white powder for what felt like hours. “I hate snow.” He kicked a large pile of it out of his way. “Snow sucks.”

            He didn’t know how long he had been walking, but it felt like forever. Sometimes the snow thinned out and he could walk faster and sometimes even run through, trying to get closer, but then it would get so high it was a strain to even move. He was lucky he was part demon, or else he would have been a popsicle by then. He had to focus on keeping his body temperature level as he trudged through, huffing into his hands and shuddering if a blast of wind was stronger than the barrages beforehand.

            “WHERE THE HELL EVEN IS THIS PLACE?!?” He shouted into the white world around him, his voice torn from his mouth and scattered into the air. He sighed and shrugged his shoulders, only stopping when he heard something respond to his shout. It wasn’t strong, but it was there, wrapping around him like a curious feeling and tugging him gently. “The song she was talking about?” Dante murmured to himself, feeling himself just follow the voice, although cautiously. Maybe the myths about a beast living in that castle was true. Or even a princess. The latter idea made him scoff, but irony had taught him to be open to any ideas, as even the ridiculous ones turned out to ring with truth.

            From that point on, the snow seemed to recede for him, a light frost covering the stone walkway like a woven blanket, melting under his feet and freezing right back up again when his foot lifted. Though this piqued Dante’s interest, it was dismissed quickly as he finally made it to the front door, rising high up and even through the clouds. “Wow. Damn.” He walked up to the door, slamming his fist onto the stone. “Knock knock! Anyone home?”

            When the ice demons lunged at him, he decided that _yes,_ someone is home and _no,_ they did not want to see him. But as he killed and destroyed the demons attacking him, he wondered why the ice melted for his footsteps, and why he was lead to this god-forsaken palace in the first place. As he drove his sword through his last opponent and they shattered into the atmosphere, he scratched his head and looked around. “Man, this place is a fucking labyrinth, huh.”

            The noises started up again, and Dante turned his head towards the sound. It was from one of the rooms on the upper levels, and as he hesitantly made his way up there, it grew louder and sounded less like a melody and more like a person singing quietly. Dante sheathed his sword and carefully pushed the door open, the wood silent as it swung. Carefully, he took a step and then another, scoping out the area and the possible exits. It was a small bedroom with a large canopy bed in the middle, icy blue and white and delicately sewn by hand, judging by the small imperfections at the corners of the blanket. Books were scattered everywhere and candles were melted down to their stubs, frost decorating the candlesticks clattered to the floor. He picked one up, and immediately it warmed in his hand, surprising the hunter. “Huh. This isn’t normal even for me, huh?” He sighed and put it on the table before looking around and spotting a cracked door, leading to another room. Hesitantly, he stepped into what he assumed would be a sun room if the giant ball of fire had decided to show up that day. But what caught his attention was the figure sitting in the middle of the room, broad shoulders hunched and both the back of his neck and hair were as white as the world around them. He seemed to be staring out of the window, and it took Dante a moment to realize that it was him that was making the strange melody, but with no instruments. Now that he was closer to the sound, it simply sounded like someone singing wistfully, and the air around them distorted it to make it sound different, haunted even. In this room, with the large windows and light curtains, it seemed colder than ever. Having enough of the cold, Dante took a step forward and the floorboards creaked beneath him, causing the melody to suddenly stop and the figure to turn around.

            _Oh._ He didn’t know what he was expecting, but the face of a young man not even twenty reaching his eyes was not one of them. He looked frozen, frost decorating his face like an intricate mask, and icy whites peeked at him. He dressed like a stranger to the cold he was surrounded in, light jacket and black pants with a hoodie underneath the colour of crimson. One of his arms was swaddled in a scarf, but glowed faintly. All in all it wasn’t anything Dante had ever considered.

            Especially when the first words out of soft looking lips were, “Who the fuck are you?”

            Dante blinked a little bit, snapping out of his surprise. “Who the fuck are you?”

            The boy of snow sneered, a strange look on his face. “Bitch I asked you first.”

            The demon hunter’s reply was immediate. “Bitch I asked you second.”

            Though the look of annoyance was something that Dante enjoyed immensely, he knew that he was here for one reason only. “Fine, I give.” He raised his hands in the air in a surrendering motion. “I’m Dante. I come as a messenger from Fortuna and the rest of the world covered in your ice shit.”

            The Ice Prince tilted his head, eyes widening. “It’s everywhere?” Suddenly his eyes narrowed dangerously at the red hunter. “Then how did you get here? No one has ever come to see me before.”

            Dante sighed and shrugged. “I got a little something special packed away in this blood of mine, yeah? And what might yours be? Your name, I mean. I can’t just call you Ice Prince forever, unless that’s your thing. I don’t kink shame.”

            The boy’s cheeks tinted a light blue at those words, though his expression remained neutral. “I’m… Nero.” His right hand shifted behind him again, and Dante’s curiousity was peaked. “Now, what do you want from me, huh?” His dry edge was back. “It had to be important if someone sent for you.”

            “Weren’t you listening, kid?” Dante was walking forward slowly, trying to get a better look at the hand hiding from his sight. “You’re freezing up the entire world; I need you to stop it before it goes to an icy hell in a frigid handbasket.”

            Nero took another step back, twisting his body so that Dante was always out of sight of it. “I-Why should I? What’s in it for me, huh? What could you possibly give me that would make me want to consider such a bogus deal? It’s ridiculous. I want something from it.”

            The demon hunter leaped to one side and grabbed the ice prince’s arm, yanking it from the safety of his coat. When the boy yelped, he quickly pulled off the scarf to reveal a dark red and blue arm. But instead of white, the frost splayed around his forearm was a deep black with violet hues, angry and throbbing. “Well…” Dante touched it and hissed as his finger became so cold it burned. “I can try and see how to fix this chaos for you, huh?” The boy’s wary eyes bored into his own, but he ignored it. “It seems like it’s causing you trouble, huh? I may not look it, but I’m pretty damn good with curses. Dealt with a few of them inflicted on myself.” When Nero relaxed, so did Dante, carefully giving him the scarf back and watching as the ice prince rewrapped his arm, wincing at the pain. “So? We have a deal?”

            Nero’s eyes flashed at him, but they seemed to relent. “I can’t help you. You came here for no reason.” When Dante gave him a shrug and gesture to continue talking, he took a deep breath and continued. “I don’t know how to control it, okay? That’s why I came here in the first place. So I wouldn’t…” He trailed off, rubbing the scarf. “So I wouldn’t hurt people. But even that’s not working. People who step in my snow freeze and die, and I can’t figure out how to fix this.” Nero turned around and began to walk out of the room. “So I can’t help-“

            “I didn’t freeze.”

            The ice prince blinked and looked over his shoulder. “You didn’t? Not even a little bit?”

            Dante gestured to himself sarcastically. “I’m at least 45% sure I’m not frozen. And that’s also if I’m hallucinating. It happens.”

            Nero rolled his eyes but hesitantly took a step back towards Dante, reaching out his human hand to the crimson hunter. When they touched a small gasp was heard from the boy, but nothing changed. He wasn’t frozen, or dead. Both of those positive things when you think about it. Dante and Nero stared at each other for a while before the younger pulled out his cursed hand, it pulsing and twitching slowly, like a heartbeat. “Do you mind if I-“Dante nodded, and took his hand, pressing their fingers together and locking them. The touch still burned in the strangest way, but after a while, Dante felt himself relaxing. Sure, it hurt, but the relief on the kid’s face kind of made it all worth it.

            Not that he gave a shit.

            Their awkward Tarzan hand holding moment lasted for a while before Nero reluctantly pulled his hand away, staring at the glowing limb with awe. “It didn’t kill you.”

            “No.” Dante grinned, elbowing Nero gently. “But the awkwardness almost did.”

            The younger laughed and Dante felt something pool inside of him before blinking it away from his brain. “I guess so, huh? But that still leaves one problem.” Nero’s face had fallen again, and Dante sighed. “You may be immune, but no one else is.”

            “You’re so dramatic.” Dante smirked, ruffling Nero’s hair and ignoring the sound of protest. “We’re gonna figure this out, alright? I promise.” He looked around and began to search the books scattered in the room. “Now, I’m assuming you’ve been looking for cures to that weird frosty the snowman shit on your arm?”

            Nero squinted and tilted his head. “Frosty the Snowman?”

            Dante stared at him and took a double take. “Yeah. Frosty. The Snowman.”

            “I don’t get it. Is that a drink?”

            “You break my heart kid.” Nero scoffed. “But you’ve been looking for a cure. But here’s the thing. Now that I’ve seen it, I’m not quite so sure that it _is_ a curse.”

            “What?” Nero seemed almost _offended._ “Are you just saying that I’m shitty at controlling my powers?” Oh, he was offended.

            “No. I’m just saying, it looks like it was damaged since I got a closer look.” He pointed at Nero’s arm and barely noticed the flinch afterwards. “Those don’t look like frost tracings anymore; they look like cracks.”

            Nero’s silence was enough of an answer, and Dante sighed. “I’m not gonna ask unless you want to tell.” Well, that was a lie, but hopefully the kid would forget he said it later on so he could keep prying. “But all we have to do is fix your arm, and then you should be able to put everything back into its natural order, right? Doesn’t sound too hard.” He turned his back to Nero again. “I promise you, Nero. We’re gonna get your shit together and out of here.”

            He missed the way that Nero stared at his arm and clenched, more cracks appearing silently in the demonic skin. “…Okay.”


	3. Melt the Frozen Heart

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Nero has many regrets.   
> But this is not one of them.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Once upon a dream music box for this chapter! I've decided it's all to be music box oriented. Please enjoy!!!

_“Nero?” Kyrie’s voice drifted through the brightly lit town covered in snow. He turned towards his eight year old friend and smiled brightly at her, two of his teeth missing. She laughed sweetly and pulled him into a hug, holding his face in her shoulder. “What are you doing out here? It’s time for Christmas Eve Dinner!” Pulling away, she tugged on his hand and walked with the silent boy to a small little house on the outskirts of Fortuna, where the lights were broken and the fireplace empty and cold but the most wonderful place in the world to be for little Nero._

_It was his home, and that’s all that mattered._

_They shuffled through the door, cheeks bright red and hair covered in snowflakes that were rapidly melting, only showing in Kyrie’s hair however. Nero’s locks seemed to just glow as they took off their shoes and huddled into the room filled with Kyrie’s family. They had invited Nero to join them for the Christmas time, and the young little boy eagerly agreed to their warm hospitality. Credo seemed a little unruffled by the white haired child, but quickly warmed up to him and took him under his wing as an older brother, considering that Nero had no others besides them as family._

_They didn’t speak of that incident which cost the young boy his parents, as it seemed Nero had somehow managed to suppress it to the relief of the entire family. It was something that no seven year old should have to bear. That evening was one of the happiest of Nero’s memories that slowly twisted and became dark as a dark voice whispered, not unkindly, “Your parents left you nothing but your curse.”_

_Nero couldn’t help but feel himself agree._

* * *

 

            “You ever go sledding in your own snow?” Dante’s voice startled the young man out of his trip down memory lane and snap the book in his human hand shut loudly before turning to look at the red clad hunter. Dante was staring at him, and when Nero did not reply, he asked the question again. “You know. Sledding. You ever think about it? Like, you can make your own ramps and stuff without even having to get off the sled?” His grin seemed unreal and the younger man raised an eyebrow. “And what’s even cooler is that you can make yourself a fucking snow fort! How rad is that?”

            Nero huffed in surprised amusement, before furrowing his brow. “I-no, I haven’t. Come to think about it, I haven’t really even tried to manipulate the snow and ice and junk.” He looked at his arm, the bright glow of his palm almost blinding as he clenched it and looked back up at Dante’s excited mischievous face. “I’m assuming by your whole body vibration you expect me to try?”

            “Oh yeah.”

* * *

 

            “This is a mistake.”

            “Come on, you’ve gotta live a little, kid!”

            “I _want_ to live. Which is why I’m saying this is a bad idea.”

            Somehow Dante had found a sled in one of the old sheds originally used for gardeners and such, made of strong and dark oak and rusted iron on the bottom. The reins were made of a crimson leather, old and worn but still good. Dante was sitting on the front of the sled, patting the back with an eager expression that made Nero nervous (and a little excited if he was being honest with himself).

            But he wasn’t going to tell Dante that.

            Especially since they were about to ride off the fucking roof.

            He sighed and sat down, rubbing his temples and trying to figure out the least awkward way to hold on to the attractive man in front of him, which eventually ended up with him gripping the man’s shoulders tightly. “I’m only going to do this once.” He warned, ignoring the man’s snort and head shake. “I’m serious. Just once. We need to figure out how to fix this whole debacle.”

            Dante’s body turned towards Nero’s so fast, he didn’t have time to lean back and Dante’s face was so close to his their breath mixed in the air, rising up like the blush in Nero’s face. “You need to loosen up, kid. I promised to help you, and I would. But between now and extreme emergency, you need to have a good time.” He turned back and pulled Nero’s legs so that they were back to chest and the ice prince’s legs were crossed on Dante’s lap. He ignored the other’s protest and began to push. “Okay! Get ready to make it snow! I don’t want to die today, alright? So it’s up to you to make sure I don’t!”

            “Dante, I’m not sure tHIS IS A GOOD IDEAAAAHHH!” Dante quickly pushed off the steep drop and before his brain could comprehend his actions, Nero’s devil bringer shot out and created a deep slope, the sled clacking and groaning in protest as it shot over the pure white ice. Dante let out a shout of approval and steered them in the direction of the ice the other created, ending up with loops and swirls that led them both high into the air and almost hitting the ground, ice appearing just in the nick of time to save their lives.

            Both white haired male’s hair whipped around them wildly and their cheeks were red from the harsh cold, but Nero had never felt more elated than this moment. This moment, when instead of creating chaos, he created fun and beauty. He focused and twisted his hand, causing the ice to disappear. They both flew off the ramp and over the fence into a large pile of snow, pillowing their descent from several meters upward.

            Both men were giggling madly as they managed to climb out of the snow and flop onto more solid ground. Their breath was heavy and their movement slow and stilted, but their eyes were bright and their voices elated. “That…” Dante wheezed, coughing and laughing at the same time. “…was amazing. I don’t know whether to laugh or throw up right now.” He managed to sit himself up and rest on the giant pile of snow, watching Nero’s giggling form twitch on the ground. “Hey, you alright?”

            Nero stopped moving for a moment before launching himself upwards and flinging a snowball straight into Dante’s face. The demon hunter seemed almost startled before grinning. “So that’s how you want it, huh? Well bring it on!” And for the next half hour snowballs flew from where the two were sitting, though Nero had a distinct advantage considering he could make all of his out of thin air and throw them. Eventually though, Dante managed to get up, blocking and dodging iceballs of death and launched at Nero, pinning his wrists and straddling his waist. “Gotcha.”

            The look of surprise and breathlessness caught the demon hunter off guard, icy whites wide with excitement and bright with happiness. His lips were a deep flushed pink and in the snow he could see the faintest of freckles decorating the younger’s nose. Warm breath hit his face and before he could stop himself, he leaned down and kissed the ice prince right on the lips. He tasted surprisingly like peppermint, and Dante’s hands slid down from Nero’s wrists to cup his face, gently rubbing over his cheekbone. He carefully pulled back when he felt no response, afraid he had upset the kid. “Nero? You okay?”

            The young prince’s face was flushed a deep crimson and his eyebrows were so furrowed they seemed to be attached. “You kissed me.”

            “Well, yes.”

            “Why?”

            Dante blinked. “What do you mean, why? You’re gorgeous.”

            Nero’s face became a brilliant crimson, and he looked away, scratching at his nose and biting his lip subconsciously. “So…If I asked for another kiss… would you?...”

            Dante’s face lit up, and ever so slowly, he leaned down pushing Nero’s hand away from his face. “All you had to do was ask.” And once again, their lips connected.

            Neither of them realized the pile of snow they landed in was now gone, the sled remaining in its place deeply soaked with water.


	4. Let It Go

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> DOn't hate me

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> oops i sinned

“Nero?” The soft voice by his ear made his whole body warm as consciousness slowly returned to his body. He blearily looked up and what enveloped his vision was a sight to behold. It had been several weeks since Dante had come to originally slay the Ice Prince, but to Nero’s surprise he instead began trying to help him find a cure for his… condition. And somewhere around the second week, Dante had kissed him.

It was safe to say that research had taken a backseat to that.

“What’s up?” His voice was grossly thick, and he cleared his throat as he sat up in his extravagant four poster bed that they now shared. It was nice to feel warm again, Nero decidedly kept to himself. “Is something the matter?”

Dante pulled his shoulders forwards and popped his back before stretching his arms with a sigh. “I think that we should get back to research, If this is going to become a legitimate thing, which I really want it to,” He nudged the younger next to him receiving a snort in reply. “We need to fix whatever this is.”

After about twenty minutes of mutual snogging and lingering touches, they managed to get dressed and eat a little bit of breakfast. Though Dante was miffed that Pizza was not deliverable to such a distance, he made do with some of the cereals and foods they could scavenge. The kitchen was still fully functional, and they made use of that with beans on toast and tomatoes and eggs. Nero was a magnificent cook, and Dante made it his mission to describe his feelings about in every synonym known to the English language.

But this morning was also covered in books and lore and parchment hallway scribbled through, as if someone had forgotten what they had planned to say to begin with and left it to itself. The dark table was overflowing with knowledge not yet read, but by the time the sun was tilting into the west, Dante had finally perked his head. “Nero, I think I found something.”

The boy had fallen asleep, delicate freckles almost invisible on his high cheekbones. When his name was called once again, dark lashes fluttered open to reveal his icy hues as they narrowed in on Dante. “Whassit?” He sobered up when he saw the look on his partner’s face, as if he read an obituary with his name on it. “Dante?”

“It says here that there’s been one case before you. Several years ago. A woman had the powers of ice and snow but because her heart was broken, she lost control, and that’s the reason why this land was-is- constantly heavily snowing. It’s still her curse. Apparently, she had a… kid before she passed into this land and never returned.” He lifted his eyes to Nero’s ivory skin somehow becoming even whiter. “Nero?”

“Is there a name somewhere?” His voice was still, like an undisturbed lake with a hurricane resting between his waters. “Anywhere? How old is this?”

“Shit, uh, hang on let me look.” He flipped the pages rapidly trying to find a date or a time, and when he did he triumphantly read out, “It was nineteen years ago.” The silence he received was almost deafening, so he hesitantly started talking again. “But I don’t know, It could have been way longer, maybe. I probably read the years wrong. You don’t need to worry about it.”

Nero’s fist slammed on the table, and it was all Dante could do to suppress his reflex of pulling his gun out. “Don’t worry about it?!? Dante, my mom might have had the same problem I did and she died of a broken heart? And her power’s still going strong? What the fuck am I supposed to do about this situation? I can’t just- I don’t know what to do! There isn’t a cure from all of these books that we’ve read, then what if there isn’t? What if I just…” He made an airy gesture with his hands. “What if I just have to disappear?”

“I won’t let you.” Dante’s voice was firm.

“And if you have to let me?”

“I won’t.” Nero scoffed and rolled his eyes, but the fear was still in his frame. He didn’t want to die. Dante sighed and stood up, reaching out for Nero. But when he touched him, he hissed, pulling his fingers back. Nero’s body was colder than ever, and even Nero seemed to feel it. “Nero? Are you okay?”

“Dante, I need a little bit of time to myself, please.” His voice had cracked and the hunter felt his willpower crumble. What a voice that boy had. “I need to think. Without you, if that’s alright.”

Dante felt his whole body move in a nodding fashion. “Okay. I’ll uh… I’ll be outside.” Shit, he always hated when he didn’t know what he should say or if he should say anything at all. Damn, conversations were hard. “Just tell me when you’re ready to let me back in.” Carefully he took the winding hallways to the front of the castle, lighting a cigarette for the first time in a long while. He struggled to recall the last time he went for a smoke, and then he remembered that he stopped a bit ago because Nero didn’t like the taste.

He hummed and removed the cigarette from his mouth grinding into it with the heel of his shoe. He didn’t notice the arrow hurtling towards him from the fog around the castle until it was far too late. It embedded into his shoulder, making him jolt back a little bit in shock. “What-“He pulled it out, but by the time he did more were soaring through the air. “Nero.” He breathed, his eyes widening, Lightning fast, he turned around and began to rush back to the castle door, adrenaline keeping the rush of pain lighting up his neurons from spreading to the rest of his body, immobilizing one part of his body at a time until finally a poisoned dart thrusted right between his shoulder blades and immobilized his body. There were at least twenty arrows in his entire form, but still he struggled to get inside. They couldn’t get to Nero. They can’t get to Nero. He struggled to open his mouth, but finally it all kicked in and Dante fell to his knees, some of the arrows digging deeper into him until he fell onto his stomach, unconscious.

* * *

 

 

Nero was pacing in his room, chewing on his thumb and his lower lip as frequently as he could. Was he wrong to send Dante away? He was only trying to help, right? Nero shook his head quietly, scratching the back of his head. Maybe he should go get Dante? Apologize? Maybe, He didn’t know. But after a few more minutes of fretting, he decided to leave his (Their) room and head to the kitchen. “Dante?”

When he wasn’t seen pigging through the leftovers, Nero’s eyebrows furrowed quietly. “Where is he? There isn’t much else he does.” He left the kitchen and was about to head to the backyard graveyard when a Frost stumbled through the wall, dark plasma oozing from a wound in it’s side. It whined at Nero, falling onto it’s side and twitching quietly, black eyes wide in pain and fear. Nero rushed over, pushing his hand into its wound and freezing it shut, gently petting the sharp points on its head. “What happened to you…” He murmured softly. His head lifted when he heard the sound of Blitz warriors spasming through the air trying to attack their enemies. Lifting his head high, he pressed on, pushing the square garden doors open to take in the situation.

It was chaos. Blitz and Frost were everywhere, desperately trying to kill the men in white trying to stab them down. After focusing a little bit, he recognized the Order jackets, and his whole body tensed. It seemed a fair fight by the untrained eye, but Nero could see that the demons were struggling. He stepped forward, hacking and slashing at the men invading _his_ house. _HIS_ land. How dare they??? “How dare you???” He snarled, launching his hand forward to envelop another person when his eye caught a body resting on its side, riddled with arrows.

Time was suddenly frozen and he felt some little form of control snap in his body as he realized that the red on Dante’s coat was a lot darker than the leather that it was made of.

His entire body bursted into frost, scream lost into the air around him. Both the men and the demons seemed to stop, staring at the fog wrapping around them in shock. “Capture the Demon Ice Prince! He’s what we’re here for!” Six people made their way into the fog, and after a quiet moment of waiting, screams of death were heard. And they were not Nero’s.

The Frost, the Blitz and the humans watched with bated breath as suddenly a man came running back, front of his pants soaked and blood splattered on his face. “M-Monster!” He screamed into the area before his eyes rolled back in his head and he collapsed to the ground, dead.

The silence afterword was deafening, but the eardrum shattering roar that followed was at least ten times worse. The frost cleared, the fog rose, and so did a dragon with the whitest scales and the darkest claws, the colour of ebony. Pink nostrils flared as slitted pupils took in everything below them, easily overshadowing the castle beneath it.

Another roar shook the ground beneath him, and hundreds of miles away, Kyrie raised her head from her sewing, a bad feeling overtaking her body.


	5. We only have each other...

            Static danced in front of his eyes as he tried to shift his body. His muscles were tight and unable to be moved. What? Why? He tried to pull a little harder and grunted as the discomfort turned into pain. Okay. Best not do that. His hearing echoed around, as if it were bouncing off of the walls in his mind. Why was he sleeping again? What was he doing before this?

            _“What if I just have to disappear?”_

_“I need to think. Without you, if that’s okay.”_

            _“DANTE!”_

Nero. Dante’s eyes snapped open and his whole body twitched violently. Oh, god. He hated dying. It was worse than year old pizza. He opened his eyes and was immediately squinting at the brightness of the snow covering his face. He needed to move. Now. Ignoring the pain in his body as best he could, He pushed his arms beneath him and lifted himself into a sitting position on his right hip. “Christ, Arrows?” He swallowed thickly, using his left hand to carefully grip an arrow in his right arm. “For Nero.” He breathed. And with that, he closed his eyes, grit his teeth, and yanked.

* * *

 

            The process took a while, and with every tug, yank and pull his wounds slowly healed. The process was agonizing and his eyes were closed for a majority of it. But when they were open, all he could see was white. Freezing, blistering, unyielding white. Over the sounds of his pain and healing, he could hear distorted sounds of the Blitz and Frost flickering around. He tried to call out, but they did not reply, just watching and waiting. Finally, when the last arrow was pulled out of his calf (He had to muffle himself particularly roughly, biting his hand until it bled), He stood up as best he could, wobbling like a newborn fawn in the harsh winds. It was a miracle he hadn’t frozen to death yet. A miracle, or a certain Prince of Frost.

            “Nero?” He called out, voice strained from being in pain. He walked slowly but surely through the blizzard warping around the castle, trying to figure out what might have happened for Nero to release this much power onto the world around them. He paused. _Unless they…_ “Nero.” The boy’s name left him like a prayer. “NERO!” His pace sped up until he was sprinting across the garden and bursting through the doors, wounds only a dull memory in his mind. His head whipped around wildly as he tried to listen for something, anything that would possibly lead him to the kid he’d come to love. “NERO?!?”

  
            He searched the entire castle, all of the rooms and crannies Nero spent his time. Even in their room, he was nowhere to be found. “Oh god. Ohhhh god.” Dante ran a hand through his hair, mind going a mile a minute. “Shit. Did they take them? Oh fuck. Fucking fuck.” He turned with a swirl of his cape and headed to the front of the castle. When he opened the doors, He was not met with a large blast of blizzard, but calm snow falling onto the cold stone beneath him. His eyes lifted from the ground and widened as he saw what blocked his path.

            “A dragon?”

            He’d only heard of them in stories. Rare to see, even rarer to get close to. And here one was, large and blending into the snow. He had to squint to make it out, but it was very real. Very real and very possibly killed Nero. His hands itched for his sword and he tried to reach for it, but it was not on his back. “Fine then. Hands on it is.” He cracked his knuckles, lifting a foot and slamming it into the stone beneath him, a resounding crack echoing in his ears. “Wakey wakey!” He called out in a sing-song fashion. “Time to play!”

            The dragon twitched, lifting its head to blearily take in its surroundings. Its eyes were an icy blue hue, like a frozen lake. When its line of sight finally landed on Dante, its eyes widened and it let out a little sound of surprise, pupils rounded instead of slitted. Dante grinned at it, a wild sort of look in his eyes. “Hi. I’m Dante. Son of Sparda. Don’t know if you can speak English or even understand it, but I’ll give you a chance. You see a kid about yay tall, White hair and blue eyes? Glowing arm?” When the dragon only blinked at him, its head tilting, Dante’s faux smile fell and gave way to pure anger. “I’m gonna take that as a yes.” He leaped into the air and landed on the dragon’s back, startling the creature before he shoved a boot into the soft spots around its wings. The dragon roared in pain, and with an ungraceful flutter threw Dante off. He landed gracefully, eyes still sharp, but he noticed that the dragon did not attack. Instead it just watched him, waiting for his next move. He launched himself again, kicking the dragon in its soft underbelly. It roared with pain again, but simply stumbled away this time. It’s eyes seemed to be… sad. Could dragons be sad? “Why won’t you kill me? You killed the one I loved. Might as well kill me too. Or at least try.” His hand twitched and his face grew dark. “I doubt you’d win even without my weapons.”

            The dragon shook its large head furiously, neck swaying quickly and harshly in the distilled air. It looked at Dante and slowly rested itself on the bridge, head lowered and faced away from the Demon hunger. It was a sign of submission if he ever saw one.

            This was… Perplexing.

            Maybe the dragon didn’t kill him?

            The dragon made a soft sound, eyes dipping lower to the ground and it shifted, revealing a darkened front paw, a large blue slit cutting through it. “What’s this? Did you get hurt?” Dante murmured, not recognizing the obvious as he took hesitant steps forward. His hand rested on the paw, and he nearly jumped back as the dragon twitched and almost moved away. “Oh. Got it. You’re injured, and you can’t leave?” It seemed to nod, and Dante gave a small huff of surprise. “So you were just in the wrong place at the wrong time, huh?” Another sort of nod, and Dante couldn’t help but smile. “Same. Hey, maybe when we heal you up, can you help me look for Nero? He’s… He’s very important to me. I need to find him.”

            The dragon nuzzled him with its gigantic snout in an affectionate way, making the hunter laugh. “You’re friendly. I’ll take that as a yes.” He looked around, trying to find a place for his new friend. “I think the courtyard is big enough for you to relax? I can’t imagine how uncomfortable the bridge is. Think you can get there?”

            In response, the dragon flapped its wings, slowly but efficiently lifting its body off of the ground enough to hover over to the courtyard, lowering itself and curling its tail tightly into its underbelly. Dante soon followed it, breathless. “That’s… That’s amazing.” It was like he was a little kid again, just exploring the good parts of the other side. “I can’t wait to show Nero. Hang on, I’ll find some salve for your wound, okay?” Dante disappeared into the castle, not seeing the melancholy look in familiar icy pupils. Nor did he hear the garbled remanences of his name coming from the unfamiliar jaws of a familiar person. No, he did not see, Nero thought quietly, looking down at his form, but he did not understand either.

            Perhaps it’s better to stay this way.


	6. Cut through the Heart, Cold and Clear

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Heart Heart Head- Meg Myers (For the chapter theme)
> 
> Dante finally knows what to do.

It was too quiet for Dante.

Nothing seemed to move or sway or even breathe. The snow had stopped, an icy silence falling over the entire premise of the castle since the dragon had come to it. He had put salve on the wound as much as he could, but it seemed to yield little results. The dragon was getting weaker day by day and for some reason it terrified the hunter. He watched and tried to take care of it for less than a week, and he was already failing at being any help to both Nero and the dragon he had named Ghost. And if things kept going as they were now, he really would be soon.

            These thoughts kept him up at night, and he finally got out of bed, tired of lying there uselessly. He donned his clothes and quietly snuck out to Ghost, who was sleeping gently on a pillowy mound of snow. He gently pet his snout, hearing the animal snort quietly in slumber. “I’ll be right back. I promise.” He murmured, his words clouding around his head as they left his mouth. When there was no response, he quickly left the castle, determined to find an answer.

            He wondered when he had gotten so deeply involved.

* * *

 

            Leaving the castle was almost like a dream. It wasn’t snowing in Fortuna either, but the snow had turned to ice and it seemed to get thicker and thicker as he walked by it. Even his footsteps barely melted the ice beneath him as he entered the order citadel, calling out for Kyrie. “Hey! Anyone home?” He kept walking by and searched as much as he could until he reached the inside of the church, coloured glass glittering from the clouded light coming in from the sky. His eyes widened as he saw the limp form of Kyrie with one of her legs crushed under a fallen pillar and crushed pews, shivering but barely alive. He rushed over and pulled her into a sitting position, rubbing her arms and trying to warm her up as he took her condition in. The left side of her face was completely covered in cracks- _scales_. They looked exactly like Nero’s Devil Bringer-

            _Oh._

            “Kyrie.” He said urgently, trying to shake her awake. “Kyrie come on you have to wake up. Please wake up come on please. I need your help now more than ever. I almost have it figured out I just need some information. KYRIE!”

            Her head slightly drooped but suddenly it rose, pupils slitted and full of fear as she screamed, the terrified sound echoing through the entire building as she tried to get away from him. “KYRIE! IT’S DANTE!” But still she kept on screaming and screaming until he released her and she fell back on the pew, shaking and crying. He hadn’t realized that though the ice did not melt for him, it seared her skin so badly that it almost looked black. “Oh. Oh my god Kyrie fuck.” He tried to step towards her but she screamed nonsensically at him, words eluding her.  Dante seemed torn and he took a deep breath as he tried to figure out how to communicate. “Kyrie, I know what’s going on, I need to find information on Dragons and Nero’s mother. I need to find the library. Where’s the library?”

            Her screams died down and she seemed to almost understand, tilting her head at him, her dress torn and destroyed at the bottom parts. That moment of clarity soon left and she opened her mouth to cry out once again.

            “NERO NEEDS YOUR HELP!” Dante shouted over her, causing her mouth to snap shut with a loud _click_. So there was some semblance of sanity left. “Nero needs me to find the library. Where’s the library?” She tilted her head, eyebrows furrowed as she tried to understand. “The library! Where is it? Nero will die if I don’t find what I need, okay?” She hissed and he took a step back. “Please, Kyrie. Please. Remember for Nero.”

            Her eyes almost softened at the sound of Nero’s name leaving his lips, and she raised one scaled hand to point at a secluded door in the shadows of the room. “Thank you.” He said eagerly, and she almost seemed to nod before her eyes clouded once again, hissing at him and screaming in pain. He tightly shut his eyes as he left the room, looking at the large expanse of books and history in the grandiose room. “Okay. Dragons.” He began searching left and right, not staying on a book longer than necessary if it didn’t have what he needed. Time seemed to stretch on as he absolutely rummaged through the entire library until he finally found a book: _Dragon Maladies and How To Spot Them._ He quickly flipped through the book looking for something that could shed some light on what the fuck was going on with Ghost- _Nero._ At the end part of the book, he saw a few pages that were newer, as if they had been just added, and as he read them, it all began to click:

_“Recently in the young history of this world, There have been people in few numbers that have become capable of harnessing the abilities of these great winged beasts, but at a cost so great to them that the pros seem almost nonexistent. The first and only recorded woman with the capabilities to change into such a wonder brought nothing but cursed snow that would fall and infect the inhabitants of the city she lived in, turning them into half men half dragon now dubbed Drogons. The only cure known for the Drogons is warm weather and excreting the substances from the body. If not done in an urgent matter, they will forever be stuck in Drogon form._

_The woman seemed not to know how to control her powers, and when she was widowed by her former husband after the birth of their son, the emotional stress turned her into a dragon that was the largest ever seen in history. Her screams echoed through the whole world, as if she was wailing to the gods about losing the one she loved. Her snow turned to ice, and she fled to the castle. Only a few brave doctors tried to go up and heal her, and as it turns out, all it took was an adventurer by the name of Alexander Snow. He said he had heard rumours and wanted to kill the beast for the glory. But when he did, she rose out of the steaming corpse, cold but still alive.”_

            Dante blinked once and blinked again. Reread the passage once, twice, three times until it finally sunk in that he knew what to do.

            He had to _kill_ Ghost.

            He had to _kill Nero._


	7. Cold

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> shit

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Cold- Aqualung and Lucy Shwartz (LISTEN TO IT I CRY)

            He’s so tired.

            His wings feel heavy and can barely move through the ice slowly climbing up his scales and surrounding his entire body, smothering the flames now quietly resting in his belly. He can barely open his eyes, and why would he? Snow is all he can see. He doesn’t want to see that.

            He wants to see Dante.

            He lets out a small warbled cry from his closed maw that sounds only like a whimper as smoke and breath curls around his face when his eyes shut again. Where is he? Is Dante okay? He’s been gone so long, he always comes in the mornings to pet him and try to help him and talk to him.

            He hates sleeping outside.

            He misses sleeping next to Dante and watching his chest rise and fall.

            He misses their kisses.

            He misses how close they were.

            He shuts his eyes once again, as if to sleep, but when he hears footsteps slowly coming towards him, one cracks open to see the wonderfully familiar red coat of Dante. His love, his dearest one.

            His brain is too muddled to understand why Dante gently comes close to his snout, a stricken look barely hidden on his face. “Hey, Ghost.” He murmured softly, a warm hand rubbing his nose. “Good to see you haven’t moved.”

            _How could I?_ Nero huffed softly at Dante, nudging at his body weakly. _I can’t feel most of my body anymore._

            “I think I’ve figured out… figured out how to fix this.” His voice was tightly controlled, as if he didn’t like the answer to this problem. “But we can do it tomorrow. We have time.” Dante’s voice made it sound like the end of his statement was a question or beg for reassurance. Nero lifted his head slowly, losing the strength to fully open his eyes by the second as he shook his head. _Now,_ he tried to convey. _Fix me back. I want to be with you._

            Dante’s face crumpled at his gesture, and he tried to laugh it off. “No, you’re tired. We can do it when you’re fully awake, okay?” Nero quickly put an end to that argument by growling at him as he lowered his head on the ground once again, almost having the energy to get angry at the Demon Hunter. He jolted his head to the left, as if to say _Do It._

            Dante watched Nero’s movements carefully, and Nero felt almost naked in front of him, as if it were their first time really truly seeing each other. “…Okay.” Dante’s voice was quiet, almost shaking if Nero knew any better. “Raise your head. Look at the sky for me.”

            Confused at the request, Nero followed directions, wondering what he was supposed to be doing. Was it another salve? What was it? “Okay, I need you to focus on the sky. Count the clouds you can see. Do this for me? Please?”

            He did a tiny little nod, and began to count them quietly. _One, two, three…_

            _Wait… How did he know I could count-_

His train of thought stopped as something sharp painfully entered the base of his jugular, quickly slicing his throat open. He couldn’t even make a sound other than a brief gasp of surprise as betrayal flashed through his mind. His head fell to the ground with a thud, choking noises leaving his mouth as some blood pooled in his mouth and poured over slightly. As his sight began to leave him, he saw Dante step towards him, blood on his hands as he kneeled next to him, gently petting his snout and whispering quiet words of apology and comfort.

            “Please forgive me.”

            _No, I don’t think I ever will._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> he he hhehhehhhhhhhhhhhhhh


	8. For the First Time in Forever

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Nothing changed.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> LAST CHAPTER LAST CHAPTER LAST CHAPTER LAST CHAPTER (unless I add smut)  
> The song for this chapter is 'Alone' by Petite Biscuit!  
> Enjoy!!!

He waited.

And waited.

But nothing happened.

            The enormous shape of the being below him did not shove itself apart to show the boy within. Though the blood was long gone by now, sinking deep into the snow that no longer melted under Dante’s feet. More than anything, it seemed to turn to ice. “Come on, you son of a bitch.” He murmured, kneeling down next to the dragon that breathed it’s last due to him. If he wasn’t afraid he might accidentally ruin his chances of getting Nero back, he would tear open the dragon itself.

            “Don’t let me be the reason you died, Nero. Please don’t.”

* * *

 

            Several hours have passed, and yet nothing has changed. Dante is covered in frost, laying next to the great beast and resting on the side of his neck. His breathing had slowed to a minimum as he waited for any sign of a change from the dragon. “I wonder if he had just made it up to be a hero.” He breathed quietly. “The guy who supposedly saved your mother. I wonder if he just brought her lookalike back with him and just killed the dragon.” He gently stroked the scales and let his eyes close. “I’ll make sure he doesn’t live much longer if he did.”

* * *

            “..nte…”

            “Dante…”

            “DANTE!”

            The man in question blearily opened his eyes to the sound of his name, the two blurry figures in his line of vision starting to look an awful lot like Trish and Lady, both surprisingly not bundled up for the atrocious weather that had been hitting everywhere for the last couple of weeks. Trish was wearing a light jacket and some lightly insulated pants, but nothing else to suggest she was cold. All lady was wearing extra was a bright blue scarf with unknown origins. “What the fuck are you doing here?” Shit, his voice was even beginning to die away too. How long had he been sitting here?

            “Us? What about you? Why are you just sitting here? All the snow is gone and the people afflicted are now back to normal. Even the girl who called for us in the church. She’s very eager to see you and the source of this chaos.” Lady cocked a hip, looking something remotely close to proud. “You did a decent job Dante.”

            A stab of guilt invaded his mind and he could only manage a half-assed smile. “Thanks guys. But I’ll be coming back later.” So killing Nero made it all stop. That’s what it took to keep his promise to the kid? Killing him? Some hero he was.

            Trish was not having it. “Why not? You’ve finished the job. All the ice is receding back to where it came from, which evidently looks like this large-ass motherfucker right here. Correct me if I’m wrong, but that’s a dragon, right? I’ve never seen one in real life, only in stories.”

            “He was, yeah.” Another stab of guilt, and he looked away.

            “He?”

            “Yeah. He. His name was Nero.”

            A long silence fell over the group, almost as silent as the dragon’s breathing. “He was a kid?”

            “Yeah.” His voice cut the tension like a hot knife through butter. “It was a fucking kid and he turned into a GODDAMN dragon for some random reason and I didn’t know that until he was dying. I went back to the church and they said the way to set him free was to kill the dragon, and it would let Nero free again.”

            Trish looked incredulous. “And you _believed_ it?”

            Dante nodded. “It happened to his mother. Or, at least, the book said it did. I’m not quite sure it was true.”

            Finally, Lady spoke up. “So you killed him to let him live.”

            Dante nodded weakly. “That was the plan. But apparently,” He gestured to the dead creature he was laying on. “It didn’t work. He’s dead.”

            “No I’m not, you absolute _fucking bastard._ ”

* * *

            Another silence fell over them, but instead of sorrow it was shock. “Was that you? Lady? Trish?” When they both shook their heads and pointed behind him, he turned and saw Nero standing in the snow, ice covering his body and melting into him to become skin and flesh and bone. His demon arm remained, but there were no cracks in it. He stood up almost immediately, eyes wide in disbelief. “Nero?”

            Nero’s hands were clenched tightly into fists, his breathing harsh and his eyes wildly lit with rage. “You tried to fucking kill me.” His voice was low, and Dante almost flinched at the betrayal and _hurt_ in the younger’s eyes. “You slit my _fucking_ throat. I don’t know where the fuck you’re from but HERE that is not something that signals endearment.”

            Dante took a step forward but he was suddenly frozen in place perfectly from the shoulders down. Shit, he was already suffering from lack of body heat, this could potentially kill him for real. He was already getting dizzy. “Heh… Well… it looks like you’ve got it under control now, yeah?”

            “Yeah, a giant shock like being betrayed by your loved one does that to you.” He took a step forward, frost forming clothes around him into his signature look. Some things don’t change. “You knew it was fucking me. You KNEW I was stuck in dragon form. And you thought _killing me_ was the best fucking solution?” The ice climbed up Dante’s body and his breathing got worse.

            Trish and Lady rushed forward to stop Nero from hurting Dante but with a flick of his wrist both he and Dante were surrounded by a thick globe of ice that reinforced with every hit or slice it took. He too another step forward, ignoring the screams of the women outside. “Did you even give a shit about me? Or was this just a way to get paid, huh?” Fuck, the hurt was finally seeping into his words and dulling the blade of his voice. “Did it mean anything to you?”

            “It-It did. I didn’t want to. Didn’t you hear me? When I spoke to Ghost-” The ice tightened. “To you. I didn’t want to do it. I promise. I found something in the church library. This happened to your mother too.”

            Nero’s eyes widened before narrowing harshly. “I don’t believe you.”

            Dante let out a wild little laugh, tunnel vision hitting him hard. “It’s fine if you don’t. You’re alive, that’s all that matters to me now.” He dropped his head onto the ice, letting his eyes shut slowly. “That’s all that matters.”

            He missed the way Nero’s eyes widened and his cry of “DANTE!” as he slowly passed out.

* * *

 

            “I’ve gotta admit, I’ve never met anybody who’s made Dante go like that. Other than his twin of course.”

            “I agree with Trish, it’s quite impressive. I can’t tell if I should give you a high five or slap the shit out of you.”

            “…Um… Thanks?”

            Dante slowly opened his eyes to a hospital bed. And it was warm. “What the fuck?” Ow, okay it hurt to talk but maybe if he just looked around to see who was here. Trish was sitting by the window, picking at her nails and talking to Lady who was leaning against the wall next to her. He twisted his head a little more to the right and-

            “Nero?”

            The boy looked down at his knees, not meeting his eyes. He was sitting right next to the demon slayer and looked like he’d been there for days, if the bags under his eyes were anything to go by. “Kyrie showed me the book.” He said quietly. “You only read half of the story.”

            Dante blinked. “What?”

            Kyrie took this moment to step in, bright eyed and beaming. “Dante, I’m so glad you’ve woken up. I was very worried.” She smiled at Nero and he made a small smile back before she returned her attention to the man in the hospital bed. “Do you remember our conversation when I was being affected by the Drogon virus?” At his nod she continued. “That passage you read was only the first part of it, you see. You rushed off and refused to read the other part because you thought the way to save him would be through killing the vessel he was in.

            “Dante, Nero turned into a dragon because he thought his mate had died. He explained to me that he saw your body riddled with arrows and blood around your body. The stress turned him into what his bloodline is, Ice Dragons. Apparently his mother took human form after she found a new lover because she was happy, but he did indeed have to kill her. That winter was one of the coldest because since she was human and unmated, her powers went out of control.”

            Nero looked down and flushed at the winks and eyebrow wiggles from Lady and Trish. “Ooooh, you guys…” Lady made quotation marks with her hands. “…Mated, huh?” And at that the Ice prince turned the colour of crimson and Kyrie patted his back affectionately before continuing.

            “I assume you two _did_ mate, which is why it affected him so. That, or you had the rare true mate meeting where you two automatically connected. Either way, it’s a powerful bond. But the reason Nero didn’t come back immediately Dante was because the Ice and Snow was receding from the land in order to let his body re-form.”

            Dante nodded, remembering watching Nero’s leg turn from ice to flesh. “Why didn’t I hear it?”

            Kyrie now looked a little smug. “I guess you were mourning too much.” She kissed Nero’s temple platonically and got a small grumble in reply before standing up tall. “Now, I think I’m going to go restore order to the church. I think I’ve had enough time to learn how to properly make sure this _never_ happens again with the proper documentation.” She waved and turned on her heel, soft clacks following her steps.

            Trish made a humming sound, eyes lidded. “Pretty _and_ smart. Just like you, Lady.”

            Lady laughed quietly and pushed herself off the wall, gesturing to Trish. “Come on, we should probably give them their space. It looks like they need to talk.” And with a small butt smack from Trish, the two were out the door.

            Nero nor Dante said a word for a while, looking in opposite directions. That was a lot of information to take in at the time and he wasn’t quite sure how to process. Nero, however, finally looked up at him and said quietly, “I almost killed you.”

            Dante couldn’t stop himself from grinning and saying, “Yeah well I already killed you so I guess we’re even.”

            Nero let a hoarse laugh leave his mouth and shook his head, letting it rest on Dante’s stomach gently. “You’re all right, aren’t you? I’m sorry for not believing you and hurting you.”

            Dante let his hand gently run through Nero’s hair, hearing the affectionate hum come from the younger with a soft sigh. “It’s fine. I’m still alive, you’re still alive, and that’s all that matters. Besides saving everyone else, of course.” Nero laughed again quietly, shifting slightly and drawing Dante’s attention. “You can come up and lay on me if you want.” At Nero’s wide eyed look, he elaborated with a smile. “A warm part of the body brings tranquility.” He said softly, cupping Nero’s face and cradling it when the boy shut his eyes and leaned into it. “And I think we’ve both had enough of the cold for a while.”

* * *

 

When Trish and Lady came back in with Dante’s things, they found both him and Nero fast asleep on the bed, Nero’s head resting on Dante’s stomach and Dante’s hand resting in Nero’s hair. And for the first time in forever, both achieved peace.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> THANK YOU FOR READING THIS!!! It's definitely come a long way, I think. But please, let me know if you'd like me to add a sex chapter later on. I might put A/B/O dynamics in there if I do. But thank you so much for reading, and I hope that you'll read my other stories. Comments are appreciated and loved!

**Author's Note:**

> I will be updating often!!! please leave comments and kudos!!!


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